PWYP Norway is the Norwegian chapter in a network of around 800 organisations from about 70 countries worldwide. We work for financial transparency in the extractive industry to promote sustainable societies.

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PRESS RELEASE: Statoil has spilled the numbers in the world's first country-by-country reporting

27 March 2015

Statoil has polluted the numbers in their first country-by-country report.

The Norwegian regulation is clear: It is the production activities that should be reported on for each country. PWYP Norway’s analysis show that Statoil in its reporting has allowed numbers from downstream operations to be mixed with the numbers from upstream operations.

Statoil should deliver a new report where they only report on the upstream activity.

– If Statoil also want to report on its downstream business, that is fine. But upstream operations must still be reported separately, and in accordance with the regulation, says Secretary General in PWYP Norway, Mona Thowsen.

The law of country-by-country reporting was implemented in Norway January 1st 2014.

The law in Norway is a result of the EU directive, which is on a minimum level. The law is the lowest common denominator for the transparency level EU countries are able to agree on. The EU reporting is again a result of the law that was introduced in the United States.

The Norwegian country-by-country regulation has the same definition as the EU directive of what constitutes upstream activities: “...undertaking active in the extractive industry’ means an undertaking with any activity involving the exploration, prospection, discovery, development, and extraction of minerals, oil, natural gas deposits or other materials”. This is what is called upstream activities in extractive industries. Downstream activities are refining, trading and marketing/selling final production. Downstream activities are not part of the definition of the current country-by-country reporting under the EU directive, nor under the Norwegian regulation.

– Civil Society and others have waited many years for the first country-by-country reporting in the world. We expect that Statoil will set the gold standard for how to do this. Statoil should do this, and Statoil can do this. But then Statoil need to publish a new country-by-country report with the correct numbers, says Mona Thowsen.

– Now it is impossoble to analyze the numbers country by country. Therefore it is important that Statoil creates a new report, says Chairman of PWYP Norway, Frian Aarsnes.

Publish What You Pay Norway has worked intensely since long before the regulation came out that Norwegian authorities must rectify weaknesses in the reporting to ensure that the reporting is as accurate as possible. We have come far, but regulation is missing three key elements to function as intended. We see the result now, spill with numbers. Politicians have a responsibility to make a good law, and that it is the relevant figures reported: Only upstream activities or upstream activities that are separated out, and with all upstream costs included.

PWYP Norway expects that the government also dare to ask for the last three demands for transparency to the companies. They have a golden opportunity to do so, when they put forth the revised National before summer.